In a move that's sure to further divide President Joe Biden's (D) base, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has rebuffed arguments that there is a genocide in Gaza. The defense secretary made the comment during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the Defense Department's FY 2025 budget request.
Protestors interrupted the hearing with calls for the United States to "stop funding the genocide in Gaza." After the protestors were removed, Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton (R) questioned the Defense Secretary over accusations that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
In response, Secretary Austin answered that "we don't have any evidence of genocide being created. We don't have evidence of that, to my knowledge."
Secretary Austin further commented that the United States is "committed to help assist Israel in defending its territory and its people by providing security assistance." However, when asked if he has been "green lighting" genocide in Gaza, the defense secretary rebuffed the claim.
"There's no question that there have been far too many civilian casualties in this conflict - far too many," he shared, adding that "what we continue to emphasize to Israelis is that civilians in that battle space need to be not only evacuated but properly taken care of once they're evacuated out of that battle space."
President Biden recently had a tense phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling on an immediate ceasefire. According to a White House readout of the conversation, President Biden addressed "that an immediate ceasefire is essential to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation and protect innocent civilians, and he urged the Prime Minister to empower his negotiators to conclude a deal without delay to bring the hostages home."
The ongoing war has stirred anti-Israel protests, and protestors have since shutdown the Senate cafeteria, telling police "this is the house of the people. The senate can't eat until Gaza eats."
